


I'm Coming Home For You

by bb_bambam



Category: GOT7, JJ Project
Genre: Canon Compliant, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Oblivious Im Jaebum | JB, and of course jinyoung is whipped anyway, anyway jaebum loves his cats so much, i can't believe that's an established tag sdkjfjksakjk lmfao, jinyoung also loves them, just 6k+ words of jjp being domestic as HECK, now includes a bonus scene featuring crackhead!jb antics lmao
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-12
Updated: 2019-01-20
Packaged: 2019-10-08 16:25:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17389718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bb_bambam/pseuds/bb_bambam
Summary: Home is where the heart is, and Jaebeom’s heart has always been Jinyoung’s.





	1. Chapter 1

When Jaebeom finally moved out of the dorm, it had been almost exclusively for the benefit of the cats. Truthfully, while he had been considering it for some time, it had been Jinyoung who pointed it out in the middle of playfully scolding him for the nth time about bringing home stray cats - “I mean, do you really think it’s safe to keep _five_ _cats_ cooped up in that room, hyung?” - and Jaebeom had conceded that (as usual) Jinyoung was right, so that had been his decision made for him.

He had started seriously planning his move immediately after that conversation, crediting Jinyoung in his head for giving him the final push he needed. Admittedly, it made the fact that Jinyoung seemed disproportionately upset about Jaebeom moving out a little confusing, but Jaebeom chalked it up to Jinyoung being upset about losing half his book collection and told him to keep the bookshelf in consolation.

(It’s a two-way deal, after all - Jaebeom is losing half of _his_ book collection, too, _and_ their bookshelf. Of course, he could easily buy another one for himself, but why does he feel like that would be _wrong_ , somehow?)

Having a flat to himself is nice. The cats have more space to run around, which means less disgruntled meowing at ungodly hours and as a result, more sleep for him. He can cook for one instead of worrying about whether Yugyeom might steal his food if he leaves it unattended. There’s no need to worry about accidentally finding Mark’s boxers in his laundry pile because Mark was careless about where he discarded them, _again_.

And there’s no Jinyoung, of course, which is perhaps the strangest part of this new arrangement. Over the last nine years of his life, there’s only been one true constant through everything. (Okay, technically Nora has been there all this time too, but even she spent some time separated from him, so Jinyoung really is the single aspect of his life that hasn’t ever changed.) But now Jinyoung - his rock, in many ways - is suddenly gone, and it feels different than being away from any of the others. He misses all the members, of course, but missing Jinyoung is a different emotion entirely.

“Do you think it’s weird to miss him more than the rest?” Jaebeom muses out loud as he chops vegetables to put in his ramen one night. Odd stares at him from the spot on the kitchen floor that he’s adopted as his resting area for the evening. “I mean, it can’t be that weird, right? I _have_ known him the longest.”

Odd’s expression doesn’t change before he starts licking his tail suddenly, clearly unconcerned with Jaebeom’s worries. Jaebeom sighs and drops the vegetables into the pot. “You’re no help. Nora wouldn’t ignore me like this.”

(Much like he doesn’t have a favorite GOT7 member, Jaebeom doesn’t have a favorite cat. But if Jinyoung is the member who gets him best, then Nora is Jinyoung’s cat-counterpart, and _maybe_ he harbors just a little extra affection for both of them.)

Right on cue, Nora - sweet, darling Nora, his most obedient and wonderful daughter - comes sauntering in and meows softly, purring as she rubs against Jaebeom’s legs. “You see?” Jaebeom says, eyeing Odd pointedly and stirring the pot before bending down to pet Nora. “Hey, sweetheart, I love you too.”

He watches Nora stroll over to Odd and start grooming him, only for Odd to swipe at her in annoyance, as usual. Nora lets out an offended meow before stalking back to Jaebeom and settling next to his feet. “Leave her alone,” Jaebeom says, rolling his eyes at Odd exasperatedly. “She was just trying to take care of you. You really think that now that we have a bigger place, you can just act up? What would Jinyoung say, hm?”

The fact that it’s Jinyoung’s name that spills from his lips and not any of the other members’ doesn’t even remotely phase him - it comes to him as naturally as breathing. (Jinyoung is the only one who was ever allowed in his room anyway, so even if Jaebeom were to mention any of the others, Odd wouldn’t really know who he’s talking about.)

After serving himself, Jaebeom settles on the couch. “Hi baby,” he says to Kunta, who’s curled up against the arm of the couch, sleeping soundly. “You look comfortable.” He glances at Minnie, who has, for whatever reason, splayed herself in the middle of the living room floor instead of on a couch or the bed Jaebeom bought specifically for her. “You...don’t look that comfortable,” Jaebeom says to her. “But as long as you’re enjoying yourself, I guess.” Fast asleep, Minnie doesn’t react, but Jaebeom smiles fondly anyway.

He turns on the TV and watches a rerun of Inkigayo as he eats, one hand petting Kunta (and it’s funny how even through a screen, seeing Jinyoung’s smiling face as he MCs is oddly comforting). Nora joins him later, claiming her usual spot in his lap, and he smiles down at her, warmth filling his heart as she nuzzles into his hand.

He’s not alone, because he has the company of five of his most beloved companions, but he is a little lonely. And he knows he’s still getting used to living by himself, but he can’t shake the feeling that something is missing. The apartment doesn’t quite feel like home - not yet.

~~~

“What do you _want_ ,” Jaebeom groans, waking up to a chorus of wails from at least three different cats. “I already bought a _house_ for you, what more do you need?”

The weight of a cat, one of the smaller ones, Jaebeom thinks, makes its way across his chest. The sensation is followed moments later by several soft but insistent meows. Jaebeom sighs fondly, recognizing Odd’s meow, and lifts a hand to pet the little head, his eyes still closed. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll feed you in a minute. Let me actually wake up first.” Odd starts purring, and Jaebeom smiles, feeling satisfied. “I love you too, silly.”

It only lasts for a second, though, because immediately afterwards, more yowls erupt from the floor beside the bed and Jaebeom sighs again. “All right, I’m coming. Relax, you crazy things.” He’s glad the group doesn’t have any schedules today, because it means he can go back to sleep after this (he won’t actually do it, but it’s still nice to think he has the option).

He finally manages to roll out of bed, and is greeted by the sight of four cats on the floor and one sitting next to him on top of the blanket, all of them looking at him expectantly. “Wow. You really only have one thing on your minds, don’t you?” he says, shaking his head. “Well, come on then.” It would probably be a ridiculous sight, if anyone were there to see it: Jaebeom walking towards the kitchen with five cats falling over themselves to follow him.

All five cats have their own weird eating habits, and Jaebeom arranges the food accordingly. For instance, true to his name, Odd refuses to eat unless his bowl is placed in a special spot slightly apart from all the others, and Kunta doesn’t eat wet food containing beef but the rest of them love it, so Kunta has a special can of food just for him. Nora is the only non-fussy eater out of all of them, and every morning, Jaebeom is reminded of what a blessing she is.

When the feeding is done, he goes to check their litter boxes, though he knows he’ll have to be quick because some of the cats eat fast and are very likely to steal food from the others if left unsupervised for too long.

Sure enough, when he returns, the smallest of the cats is sitting in front of an already-empty bowl and meowing pathetically while eyeing Nora’s bowl. Jaebeom calls this one Junior because he looks like a mini version of Kunta (and on an unrelated note, having nothing to do with former stage names, the cat is also very much like Jinyoung - cute and highly aware of his power to make people do what he wants. Jaebeom tries to resist, but as with Jinyoung, he often can’t).

“I just fed you,” Jaebeom says, trying to stay strong, but Junior’s powers of persuasion are too strong. With the next miserable meow, Jaebeom’s resolve crumbles, and he gives the little cat some extra food, all the while berating himself for giving in.

Half an hour later, once the cats and Jaebeom have finished eating, Jaebeom settles down on the couch with his laptop and his journal for lyrics. It might be a day off, but he’s not going to waste an opportunity to work on music uninterrupted.

And he doesn’t, at least until Junior and Odd come tumbling in, play-fighting with each other (or perhaps actually fighting - Jaebeom can never tell). “Can you two cut it out?” he asks with a sigh. “Go play with your toys, stop bothering each other.” They disregard him entirely and continue jumping around, and the noise apparently startles Kunta, who comes bolting into the room seconds later. Jaebeom directs his attention to the newcomer, exasperated. “What are _you_ running around for?”

The commotion is distracting enough that he doesn’t hear the click of the lock or the front door opening, but there’s no way he could miss the familiar laugh that floats through the room afterwards. “Having some trouble, hyung?”

“Jinyoung? What are you doing here?” Jaebeom asks instead of answering the question. It’s not that he’s not happy to see Jinyoung (he’s beyond happy, in fact), but he hadn’t been expecting a visit.

“I was bored,” Jinyoung says, slipping off his shoes and jacket. “My supply of books has been dwindling.” He flashes a cheeky smile Jaebeom’s way as he comes closer. “So I thought I’d drop in and see what I could find here instead.”

“You could have knocked,” Jaebeom says, but a smile is already spreading across his face.

“I could have,” Jinyoung agrees, “but you seemed a little distracted when I walked in. And what’s the point of having a key if I don’t use it?”

“I guess,” Jaebeom says, laughing a little. “The babies decided they would start fighting and distract their father from his work, _didn’t_ they?” He directs the question towards the three cats in question, who are now sitting near the coffee table, looking innocently up at him.

“Terrible,” Jinyoung says with an exaggeratedly shocked expression, immediately playing along. He sits down on the floor near Kunta and looks at them pointedly. “You should behave yourselves, you know. Your dad has enough work on his plate looking after five other menaces.”

Jaebeom smiles at the sight of Jinyoung laughing at the bemused expression on Odd’s face. “Have you eaten anything, Jinyoung?” he asks as Nora and Minnie wander in one-by-one, probably to find out what all the excitement is.

“Yeah, I ate before coming,” Jinyoung says, petting the newest arrivals happily as Junior gets up and tries climbing into his lap. “I don’t mind staying for lunch, though, if you’re cooking.”

“Don’t lie, you were planning to stay anyway,” Jaebeom says easily. Jinyoung just laughs, beaming at Jaebeom before his attention shifts back to the cats, and it’s such a lovely little moment that Jaebeom’s phone is out and his camera app is open before Jaebeom even realizes it.

Jinyoung blinks up at him after the photo is taken. “What was that for?”

“Nothing,” Jaebeom says with a soft smile, his chest warm. “It was just a nice shot.”

And it is. Of all the pictures he’s taken of Jinyoung (and there are a lot), he thinks this one is his new favorite. It’s hardly one of his best, professionally speaking, because it’s just his phone camera rather than his fancy one. Regardless, he selfishly wants to keep the photo to himself. Many of his pictures of Jinyoung are quite beautiful and deserve to be shared with the world, and he has shared them.

But this one - with Jinyoung sitting on his living-room floor, captured mid-laugh and not covering his mouth, surrounded by Jaebeom’s five little angels - this one is too perfect. This picture is for Jaebeom only.

~~~

At first, it was fine that Jaebeom left the dorm, because Mark was still there and Yugyeom was still there, so there was no danger of loneliness. But then Mark and Yugyeom moved out, relatively soon after Jaebeom did. And that - well.

See, Jaebeom _knows_ Jinyoung, knows all his tics, all his quirks, what he likes, what he dislikes, knows him inside and out, better than he knows himself. And he knows that as much as Jinyoung likes his privacy and his space, he doesn’t much care for total isolation. Being stuck alone in a dorm is about as far from ideal for Jinyoung as possible and Jaebeom knows it. He knows Jinyoung knows it too, because he had _warned_ Jinyoung about it months ago, back when Bambam decided to move out, but Jinyoung had brushed it off then as a problem for another day. Now that day has arrived, though - and it seems like Jinyoung has already come up with a coping mechanism.

“I thought I’d like having the dorm to myself, honestly, but it just feels empty,” Jinyoung tells him as the explanation for why he’s accompanying Jaebeom back to his apartment for the fifth evening in a row. “Who knew I would miss the company of those brats this much?”

“Me,” Jaebeom says, trailing after Jinyoung as he heads for the kitchen and helps himself to a glass of water. “I’m pretty sure I predicted this ages ago, you know.”

“Saying ‘when they all leave, then you’ll see’ isn’t predicting anything,” Jinyoung says dismissively, leaning against the counter and looking at Jaebeom matter-of-factly. “Hi Kunta, you’re looking cute today,” he adds as the mentioned cat strolls in and rubs against Jinyoung’s legs.

“I said it and it ended up happening, which is the definition of predicting, Jinyoungie,” Jaebeom says patiently, leaning down to pet Kunta when he leaves Jinyoung and comes to Jaebeom instead. “And stop buttering up my cats, they’re getting too attached to you.” As if to prove his point, Nora wanders in too and leaps delicately onto the counter to sit next to Jinyoung and rub her face against his waist.

“Joke’s on you, Jaebeommie, they were already attached to me,” Jinyoung says carelessly, smiling smugly as he scratches Nora’s ears, and Jaebeom really should be mad about the informality, but it’s Jinyoung and - as with most things Jinyoung does - he can’t bring himself to care much.

“Traitor,” Jaebeom murmurs at Nora before looking back at Jinyoung and resisting the temptation to reach out and ruffle his hair like he’s a cat too.

“Is it supposed to feel this bittersweet?” Jinyoung sighs, sounding slightly melancholy again. “I know the kids are all happy living by themselves now, but I just feel like a parent whose children have all left home.”

“What does that make me, then?” Jaebeom jokes in an attempt to cheer Jinyoung up, noting that he wasn’t included in Jinyoung’s lamenting - he never is, when it’s “the kids” they’re talking about.

Jinyoung eyes him, and years of familiarity have taught Jaebeom to see the glimmer of mischief hiding in his gaze. It means Jaebeom probably won’t like what he’s about to hear, but it also means Jinyoung is feeling better, which makes it worth it. “My deadbeat ex-husband who abandoned me for his cats,” Jinyoung says without missing a beat.

“ _Ex_ -husband?” Jaebeom asks innocently, playing along. “What did I do to deserve that?”

Jinyoung raises an amused eyebrow. “Well, moving out and leaving nothing to my name besides the bookshelf didn’t do much to help your case.”

“You love that bookshelf,” Jaebeom says, because it’s true. “I thought you wanted to keep it.”

“I loved it because it was ours,” Jinyoung says softly, and suddenly his words feel heavier. “Because it was something just for the two of us.”

Jaebeom stares at him for a few moments. “I’m sorry, then,” he finally says. “I guess leaving it for you wasn’t as good of an idea as I thought it was.”

“You don’t have to _apologize_ ,” Jinyoung says, smiling faintly, and with his smile, the weight lifts again. “I’m not actually upset, hyung. As long as I can keep coming here and taking your books, anyway.”

“Door’s always open for you, Youngie,” Jaebeom tells him, feeling overwhelmingly fond despite Jinyoung’s playful threat. “I mean, I gave you a key, didn’t I?”

“Yeah, you did,” Jinyoung says. “Thank you, by the way.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” Jaebeom says, shaking his head. “You were the first person I thought of giving one to. The only person, actually.”

“How sweet,” Jinyoung says, his eyes twinkling, and it would probably have sounded sarcastic coming from anyone but him. “You might just be able to upgrade yourself from ex-husband if you keep that up.”

“I’m sure the kids will be delighted to hear it,” Jaebeom teases back. _Husband_ , he thinks, and the implications of that word should probably feel weightier, but Jaebeom finds that they're not very daunting at all.

“They probably will, actually,” Jinyoung murmurs, looking momentarily pensive. It only lasts a second, though, before he breaks into a smile again, sweeping Nora into his arms and tugging Jaebeom’s sleeve to direct him towards the living room. As always, Jaebeom follows willingly. “Come on, hyung, I want company. Let’s gather all the cats on the couch and watch a movie together.”

(And - wow. He knows Jinyoung better than anyone else, of course, but sometimes he forgets that it goes both ways. Because Jinyoung knows _him_ too, knows all his tics, all his quirks, what he likes, what he dislikes, knows him inside and out, better than he knows himself.)

~~~

There’s a knock on the door one morning, and Jaebeom tries very hard to mask his surprise when he finds Bambam lingering in the hall rather than someone else. (Not that he was _expecting_ anyone else, because Jinyoung never knocks, but at the same time, Jinyoung _is_ his most frequent visitor, and so what if he’s gotten used to it?)

“Good morning, hyung!” Bambam says cheerfully. Jaebeom is momentarily taken aback when Bambam actually waits to be invited inside, which is very unlike him (and very different from Jaebeom’s usual guest, of course, who just walks in like he lives here - which, to be fair, isn’t _that_ far from the truth).

“Hi Bambam,” Jaebeom finally greets him, stepping aside to let him in. “What brings you here? Mark didn’t come over today?” It’s a genuine question - Mark visits Bambam even more often than Yugyeom does, which is a little surprising, but sweet nonetheless.

“He went to Jackson-hyung or Youngjae-hyung’s house,” Bambam says, walking to the couch and sitting down next to Kunta. “I forget which. Maybe Youngjae-hyung’s, it’s been a while since he’s visited Coco.”

“Ah, that makes sense,” Jaebeom says, nodding. He’s glad Bambam is here, in all honesty. Even though they still spend most of their time together, he misses the other members a lot, and he knows they miss each other too.

“Anyway, I wanted to come see the cats,” Bambam says, reaching out a hand to pet Kunta, who twitches slightly at the touch before relaxing again. “I haven’t even gotten to meet them properly.”

“I haven’t met yours either,” Jaebeom points out.

“And who’s stopping you from doing that?” Bambam counters. “Just come over, they’ll love a crazy cat person like you.”

“Hey, have a little respect,” Jaebeom scolds him gently. “You of all people should know there’s nothing wrong with being a cat person.”

“Just teasing, hyung,” Bambam says with a wide grin. “You know it’s all out of love.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Jaebeom says, but he can’t fight his smile. “Do you want something to eat?”

Bambam’s eyes light up mischievously. “Are you going to cook for me?”

“No,” Jaebeom says, even as he grins at Bambam’s eagerness. “I just finished cooking something, so that’s the best you’re getting.”

“Rude,” Bambam says, looking amused. “I’m sure you would cook something else if I were Jinyoung-hyung. I’m surprised he’s not here right now, actually. Doesn’t he like, basically live with you now?”

“He’s filming all morning, and he’s going back to the dorm to rest before practice,” Jaebeom says, ignoring Bambam’s question, which leaves the answer obvious.

“I guess he’ll be back after practice, right?” Bambam says with a wink. “Why didn’t you just move out together? It seems like he spends more time here than the dorm.”

It’s a valid question, Jaebeom supposes, and maybe he should have expected it, but the fact is, he doesn’t really have a good answer. Why _didn’t_ he and Jinyoung move out together? “I don’t know. I mean, I left for the cats, mostly. And I wanted to be independent, I guess.”

“Well,” Bambam says cheekily, “you’re doing a _great_ job of that.”

“Shut up, brat,” Jaebeom says, shaking his head in amused disbelief - it’s been years, but teasing him never gets old, apparently. He gets up and ruffles Bambam’s hair before heading to the kitchen. “I’ll bring you some food.”

“Thanks, dad!” Bambam calls. Jaebeom can hear him laughing to himself, and he can’t help melting into a smile at the sound.

Bambam stays and plays with the cats for about an hour before deciding to go back home and nap before their dance practice. After Bambam leaves, Jaebeom settles back into the couch heavily with a groan, Bambam’s comments about Jinyoung still burning in his mind. _Why didn’t we move out together?_ (Maybe, he thinks, maybe it was because for once in their lives, neither of them properly communicated what they really wanted.)

Nora is on the next cushion with her head down, but she lifts it to look at him, not making a sound. “What are you looking at?” he grumbles. She just blinks at him reproachfully before settling her head back on her paws. Jaebeom sighs and reaches out to stroke her ears gently. “Yeah, I know. I miss him too.”

~~~

“Jinyoung,” Jaebeom says, taking a break from editing some new music to watch Jinyoung lazily flip through a book. He looks like the picture of domesticity, sitting there in pajama bottoms and Jaebeom’s sweatshirt, for some reason (there’s an entire section of the closet containing Jinyoung’s clothes which he could easily wear instead), with Junior on his lap and Minnie curled up between him and Jaebeom. It’s a sight Jaebeom wouldn’t mind seeing every night. “Jinyoungie.”

“Hmm,” Jinyoung says distractedly. “What is it?”

“Help me with my diet,” Jaebeom requests. “I’ve decided to go on one.”

“You don’t need to be on a diet,” Jinyoung says, not even bothering to look up from his book.

“I’m trying to be healthier,” Jaebeom says, willing himself not to do something childish like pout at him. “You should be supporting me.”

“Should I?” Jinyoung asks rhetorically, finally looking at Jaebeom, though he doesn’t stop absentmindedly stroking Junior’s ears.

“Please, Youngie?” Jaebeom asks, pulling out the nickname that never fails to make Jinyoung melt. “You already watch how much coffee I drink, you just have to stop me from eating too much now too. It’ll be so easy.”

“What brought this on, all of a sudden?” Jinyoung asks, eyeing Jaebeom suspiciously. “Have you been reading hate comments or something?”

“Nothing like that,” Jaebeom assures him hurriedly. “I just, I don’t know. I feel like I’ve been slacking off a little lately. Eating snacks when I don’t need to, things like that.”

“So, just being a regular person,” Jinyoung says, raising an eyebrow. “Living your life isn’t slacking off, hyung.”

“It’s not like I want to do it to lose weight or anything,” Jaebeom says, trying to placate Jinyoung. “I just think it would be nice to develop healthier habits. And if anyone can keep me on track, it’s you.”

The corner of Jinyoung’s mouth curls in amusement as he looks down at Junior, still seated on his thighs, and addresses him. “You hear that, Jinyoung? Your dad is giving me the power to control his eating habits.”

Jaebeom understands that this is Jinyoung’s way of agreeing, so he promptly changes the subject. “I still don’t understand why you have to call him Jinyoung.”

“I refuse to call him _Junior_ when I hated the name so much,” Jinyoung says resolutely. “It’s solidarity. You should have just named him Jinyoung, and then it wouldn’t be weird.”

“He isn’t named after you, though,” Jaebeom mumbles, scratching his ear self-consciously.

Jinyoung breaks into a real smile at that. “Sure he isn’t, hyung.” He shuts his book and puts it on the coffee table before lifting Junior into his arms and kissing the top of his head. “I’m going to bed, don’t stay up too late.” On his way out of the living room, he pets Minnie and ruffles Jaebeom’s hair affectionately too, before wandering off to the bedroom with Junior in tow.

Jaebeom watches him go, wondering whether this is a new development, or if they’ve always been this domestic and he’s only just now realizing it. (And if he really thinks about it, everything feels so normal, so _easy_ , that, well, the second option is probably the right one.)

~~~

“Odd! Don’t you want this?” Jaebeom waves a toy mouse in the air, waiting for Odd to notice it. Once he’s successfully captured the cat’s attention, he tosses the mouse a short distance away and watches in amusement as Odd bolts after it.

It’s one of the rare evenings where none of the members have anything pressing to do, expect for Jinyoung, who’s been filming for his drama the whole day. It’s nearing midnight now, and Jaebeom is entertaining himself by playing with the cats and sneakily eating a small snack. A little break in his diet can’t hurt, he reasons, and anyway, Jinyoung isn’t here like he usually is in the evening so it’s not like his very own personal health coach will ever find out.

Of course, it’s right when that thought crosses his mind that his phone rings - it’s almost too obvious who’s calling.

_Incoming video call from Jinyoungie_

Instinctively, Jaebeom puts his snack bag down. Technically, he could just not pick up, pretend tomorrow that he went to sleep early so he can avoid a scolding, but Jinyoung knows him much too well to fall for it, so he reluctantly answers the call.

Jinyoung’s judgemental stare doesn’t lose its strength through a screen, Jaebeom finds. He still feels as intimidated as he would have if Jinyoung were here in person, and he’s sure his face has guilt written all over it. They stare at each other for a few moments before Jinyoung breaks the silence. “You’re eating, aren’t you.” It isn’t a question.

“...No,” Jaebeom says after a pregnant pause that surely tells Jinyoung that he’s lying. He looks away from the camera embarrassedly, choosing instead to focus his attention on Nora, who just wandered into the living room and jumped onto the coffee table.

“Hyung,” Jinyoung says, his tone both amused and exasperated. “You’re the one who wanted to diet in the first place. And you’re still eating like this?”

“I know,” Jaebeom mumbles. “I didn’t think you would find out.”

Jinyoung rolls his eyes, looking fond. “I leave you unsupervised for _one_ night, I swear. Next time I should tell the babies to keep you in line. And why would it matter if I found out or not? It’s _your_ diet.”

“I don’t know, I mean - I, uh. What was the question again?” Jaebeom asks, because he lost track of the conversation somewhat when Jinyoung referred to his cats, his little angels, as _the babies_ , which normally only he would do, but somehow, it’s not even a bit out of place to hear Jinyoung say it.

“Wow, are you really that embarrassed about being caught?” Jinyoung says, laughing a little. “You’re _blushing_.”

“No, I just -” Jaebeom breaks off, his face heating up more. “I mostly just started eating because I was feeling lonely.”

“But you have so much company,” Jinyoung teases, but Jaebeom can tell he knows what Jaebeom actually meant. _I missed you_. “Better not let your poor babies find out that their daddy doesn’t appreciate their presence.”

“They’ll never find that out,” Jaebeom protests, though he’s unable to hold back a smile, “because it’s not _true_ , Jinyoungie.”

“Of course not,” Jinyoung says, his eyes glinting playfully. “I’ll stay on the line, anyway, though. Just in case you need a little extra companionship.”

So they leave the video chat on, though neither of them talk (because the fact is, they really don’t need to). Jaebeom finds that simply listening to Jinyoung’s steady breathing through the phone as he reads is soothing. As peaceful as it is, they’ve only been sitting in comfortable silence for a few minutes when Nora suddenly starts meowing desolately. It goes on for some time before Jaebeom finally looks up from his book.

“Why are you crying?” he asks, looking at Nora worriedly. “Nora, baby, what’s wrong?” Nora usually never acts up, so this is quite possibly a cause for concern.

“Is she okay, hyung?” Jinyoung’s voice filters through the speaker. “Did something happen?” Almost as if she’s reacting to the sound of Jinyoung’s voice, Nora jumps onto the couch and sniffs at the phone lying on Jaebeom’s thigh before meowing again. “Hi Nora, sweetie, do you miss me? I’m here!”

To Jaebeom’s surprise, as suddenly as she started, Nora stops her crying as Jinyoung speaks and instead curls up on Jaebeom’s lap, her face turned towards to his phone. “Huh,” he says. “I guess she really _did_ miss you. Seems like she likes the sound of your voice.” _Like father, like daughter_ , he thinks.

Jinyoung laughs fondly. “I mean, I _am_ her favorite, after you of course. We’ve bonded over the years, right Nora?” It’s true, Jaebeom thinks, because Nora has known Jinyoung almost as long as she’s known Jaebeom, and Jinyoung has always been particularly attached to her. His chest fills with warmth watching Jinyoung coo at his most precious daughter like he loves her just as much as Jaebeom does. “I miss you too! I’ll come visit you tomorrow, okay? Tell your grumpy father to be ready.”

(It’s almost pointless to say it, because half of Jinyoung’s wardrobe is in Jaebeom’s closet and his own designated mug is in the kitchen cabinet and he has a toothbrush in Jaebeom’s bathroom. For all intents and purposes, Jaebeom’s apartment - kind of like Jaebeom himself - exists with the expectation that Jinyoung will be there too.)

“Brat,” Jaebeom says, shaking his head amusedly. Not for the first time, he wonders why he lets Jinyoung get away with this kind of teasing so easily - perhaps because it’s worth it to see the self-satisfied smile on Jinyoung’s face. “Now you have to come, you’ve gotten her hopes up.”

He thinks Jinyoung maybe heard the part that went unsaid, that Nora isn’t the only one whose hopes are up, because Jinyoung’s eyes seem to twinkle knowingly as he grins. “Don’t worry, hyung. I’ll be there.”

~~~

“Do you think we’re too codependent?” Jaebeom asks one night as he and Jinyoung are lying side-by-side in Jaebeom’s bed, all five cats curled up in various spots next to and on top of them.

(This is familiar for them by now. It’s been happening more and more frequently, because Jinyoung almost always comes over after their schedules to avoid being bored by himself, and then it ends up being too late for them to bother their manager with bringing Jinyoung back to the dorm. Jaebeom could drive Jinyoung himself, but Jinyoung doesn’t want him driving back alone, and anyway, it’s easier for Jinyoung to watch Jaebeom’s diet if he’s here, and of course Jaebeom would never make him sleep on the couch, and there are a million reasons Jaebeom could list but none of them would be the truth. Because the real reason they find themselves in the same position every single night is that when Jinyoung is with him, Jaebeom feels like he’s home.)

“Maybe,” Jinyoung says after a few moments. “I think we’re just too used to each other.”

Jaebeom hums in acknowledgement, his hand finding the soft fur of the cat sleeping next to his leg. “None of the others are like this, you know.”

“None of the others have lived our lives,” Jinyoung reasons. “We’ve all been together a long time, but the two of us have always been different and you know it, hyung.”

And he’s right. There’s not a single person in the world besides Jinyoung that Jaebeom could even fathom being in this position with right now. “Is it supposed to be this hard to live without you?” he asks softly.

“Probably not,” Jinyoung says, letting out a quiet laugh. “I didn’t think it would be hard. I really thought I’d be able to handle some independence. From you, especially. I thought I’d be tired of living with you.”

“Me too,” Jaebeom agrees, smiling at the absurdity because the fact is that every time he imagines his future, it’s always implicit that Jinyoung is there too. He had said it on a whim, but in hindsight, his comment about their tombstones being next to each other hadn’t really been that crazy. Not for them, anyway. “It’s been nine years together. But here we are anyway.”

“Here we are,” Jinyoung repeats softly, turning his head to look at Jaebeom. He sounds a little breathless when he speaks again. “Jaebeommie-hyung.”

“Jinyoung,” Jaebeom says, his voice gentle as he meets Jinyoung’s eyes. “Jinyoungie.”

Jinyoung sighs, and it sounds content rather than troubled. “When did we fall in love with each other, do you think?”

Jaebeom thinks he should probably be a little more surprised by Jinyoung’s words. It’s not like he’s ever actively acknowledged that what he feels for Jinyoung might go beyond the realm of friendship. Now that it’s out in the open, though, he finds that it isn’t actually that shocking. “I...I don’t know.”

“You didn’t even realize, did you?” Jinyoung asks after a beat. He sounds amused, and Jaebeom resigns himself to the inevitable teasing.

“No,” he admits. “How did _you_ realize?”

Jinyoung giggles a bit, and Jaebeom would probably be somewhat indignant if Jinyoung’s laughter wasn’t the most beautiful sound he’s ever heard. “It wasn’t just one thing, you know.” He clears his throat dramatically, actor that he is, and Jaebeom feels nothing but affection flooding his mind (and yeah, actually, things like this really should have been signs). “We do so many little things, hyung. All the members even know it.”

“Do they?” Jaebeom asks, but he’s smiling because that’s not very surprising either.

“Of course, we didn’t raise a bunch of _complete_ idiots,” Jinyoung says, laughing fondly. “And I _did_ confess in the middle of an interview,” he adds cheekily. “ _JB ga daisuki_.”

Even now, Jaebeom feels his face heat up at the memory of Jinyoung saying something so intimate in such a brazen way. “I didn’t think you were being serious.”

Jaebeom can hear the smirk in Jinyoung’s reply. “Your reaction said otherwise, Jaebeommie.”

“I didn’t expect it!” Jaebeom says, though he’s smiling. “You caught me off guard.”

“I know, that’s why I said it,” Jinyoung says, and he’s as unapologetic as Jaebeom expected him to be. “But I did mean it, too.” His smile, warm and soft and _adoring_ , has Jaebeom melting into the sheets. “That’s not all, though. Just now, you let me call you Jaebeommie. And you’ve been letting me do it for a while now. Years, actually.”

“I -” Jaebeom breaks off, unsure of how to explain himself. It’s true that respecting age difference is important to him, but Jinyoung is - and always has been - the exception to every one of his rules. “Yeah, I do. I guess...I like how it sounds. When you say it.” It feels special, another thing for just the two of them that no one else can share. “Because sometimes I’m not just your hyung. Sometimes it feels like we’re more than that.”

“Yeah,” Jinyoung says with a soft smile. “Isn’t that exactly what love is?” Jaebeom can’t argue with that. “You let me keep the bookshelf, too.”

Jaebeom is quite taken aback that Jinyoung would bring that up. “But I thought you only liked it when it was ours.”

“It was still sweet of you, though,” Jinyoung says. “It felt like something deeper. Like you were leaving a part of yourself with me.” He laughs to himself before continuing, “But something else that really surprised me was the picture you posted, the one with the sun shining on me. It was like seeing myself through your eyes.”

As always, Jinyoung is right, because he _is_ radiant under any lighting and that shot had indeed reflected exactly how Jinyoung looks all the time. “You’re easy to photograph. You always look good.” _Beautiful_ , Jaebeom's mind corrects helpfully. _Breathtaking_.

“See?” Jinyoung says, the corners of his eyes crinkled and his tone playful. “I think the same about you, hyung, don’t worry.” He actually winks at Jaebeom as he says it, and Jaebeom wonders if he’ll ever feel anything but exhilaration and affection when Jinyoung does anything at all. (He thinks the answer is probably no.) Jaebeom watches Jinyoung’s eyes light up moments later as they fall on Nora, lying between them. “Oh, and here’s another thing - you let me inside your room and trusted me with your cats.”

“That’s because they love you,” Jaebeom says, and automatically, his mind adds, _Just like I do_.

Jinyoung smiles like he knows exactly what Jaebeom is thinking (and really, maybe he does). “But I think the biggest thing you’ve done that lets me know for sure that you’re just as in love as I am is simple.” Jaebeom looks at him curiously, and Jinyoung exhales. “You’ve spent almost half your life with me and you still want me by your side.”

“Yeah, I do,” Jaebeom murmurs. “Forever. And maybe it’s selfish, but I hope you never want to stop being there. Because I don’t want you to leave.” _Because I think you’re my home_.

“No,” Jinyoung says firmly. “I could never, hyung.”

A comfortable silence settles over them and Jinyoung’s hand finds Jaebeom’s under the covers. Jaebeom accepts readily, tangling their fingers together before breaking the silence hesitantly. “Does this mean - am I...you know...gay?” he asks. “Are we gay?”

“Does it really matter?” Jinyoung counters. “Isn’t it enough to say that we can’t imagine living without each other, and we don’t want to, either? Isn’t loving each other enough?”

And he has a point. Jaebeom grew up thinking it was wrong and unnatural to love a man, but nothing has ever felt more right and natural to him than having Jinyoung by his side, so maybe it _doesn’t_ matter whether they’re straight or gay or something in between. Maybe what really matters is that they’ve chosen each other. Maybe they’re just two people who care about each other more than anything else, and that’s okay. “I think so,” Jaebeom finally says, squeezing Jinyoung’s hand gently. “I think that’s enough for me.”

“Look at us. I’m in your bed, holding your hand, with two of your cats on top of me, like we’re married or something,” Jinyoung whispers, and Jaebeom can hear the smile in his voice. “It’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever experienced.” He moves his head closer as much as he can without disturbing the cats, close enough to ghost a kiss at the corner of Jaebeom’s mouth. “And yet I never want to leave.”

“Then don’t,” Jaebeom breathes, and he’s almost choking with how much he wants it, how much he wants Jinyoung to stay here, in his bed, in his apartment, in his life, next to him, always. “Don’t leave, Jinyoungie, don’t go back home, ever.”

“Jaebeommie,” Jinyoung says, his voice soaked with affection. He leans in again, and this time, Jaebeom leans in too so Jinyoung’s lips can press against his own, just for a moment, light and barely there but wonderful anyway. Here they are, in bed together with their hands intertwined, surrounded by Jaebeom’s beloved cats, moonlight dimly illuminating the room, and Jaebeom can’t see a thing but Jinyoung’s smile. “I _am_ home.”  



	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jinyoung's first time waking up in Jaebeom's apartment isn't quite what he expected.

The first time Jinyoung sleeps over at Jaebeom’s, he wakes up the next morning to find Jaebeom’s side of the bed empty, except for Junior and Nora, who are still asleep. With some effort, Jinyoung sits up and moves towards the edge of the bed, taking in his surroundings through bleary eyes.

The sight he encounters on the ground has him rubbing the sleep from his eyes, his mouth falling open in disbelief.

Jaebeom is on all fours, crawling away from the bed, not looking even slightly embarrassed. For a few moments, Jinyoung wonders if he’s still sleeping and this is some kind of fever dream. “Hyung?” he finally asks once he’s found his voice again. “What are you _doing_?”

“Shhhh!” Jaebeom shushes him without turning around, glancing in apparent worry at the three cats near him, who all seem to be half-asleep in various spots on the floor. After several long seconds, he seems satisfied that they’re undisturbed, and turns to smile up at Jinyoung. “Sorry,” he says in a loud whisper. “I’m trying not to attract their attention.”

Jinyoung blinks at him. A glance at the clock tells him that it’s not an unreasonable hour, but he still feels like it’s too early to be dealing with something like this. “What?”

“If I walk normally, they’ll wake up and get all clingy and adorable,” Jaebeom explains, his voice still low. “So I have to crawl, or I’ll never be able to leave.”

“Okay,” Jinyoung says slowly. It is, by far, one of the weirdest things he’s ever seen Jaebeom do, but it does seem to be working - the cats aren’t going anywhere near him. “So should I be doing the same thing?”

“You don’t have to if you don’t mind them swarming you as soon as you get up,” Jaebeom says. “Just wait for me to leave first if you do that, though.”

“It’s fine,” Jinyoung says hurriedly. “I’ll crawl too.” Part of his brain - a very small part - is in disbelief that he’ll just go with anything Jaebeom tells him, but the rest of his brain is beyond used to it by now. It’s just who they are, at this point - wherever Jaebeom goes, Jinyoung follows.

Jaebeom beams at him, which really makes the decision worth it in Jinyoung’s mind. “Try not to make too much noise, just crawl over here slowly.”

Jinyoung obediently does as he’s told, carefully climbing over the sleeping forms of Junior and Nora to end up on his hands and knees on the floor. “You really do this every morning?” he asks as he starts crawling. He can’t help but grin at the thought of Jaebeom doing this every day, and then he melts into a softer smile at the thought of _seeing_ Jaebeom do this every day.

“Unless we have a day off,” Jaebeom confirms. “On free days I can waste a little more time.”

“This is how you _save_ time?” Jinyoung laughs a little, his tone fond. “By being ridiculous?”

“It works,” Jaebeom says with a shrug. “Have I ever been late to a schedule yet?”

Jinyoung reaches where Jaebeom has been waiting for him and smiles, rolling his eyes good-naturedly. “I guess not. But you’re lucky it’s just me and not any of the others. They’ve gotten bad enough about respecting you as it is.” It’s the truth - any of the other members would have already sent a message about this to the group chat by now.

But Jinyoung? He won’t expose Jaebeom this time, no matter how funny it would be to the others. (And even if it’s partly to protect his own image - he’s crawling around too, after all - it’s _mostly_ because the way Jinyoung sees it, the decision to share something like this rests entirely with Jaebeom.)

Jaebeom mirrors his smile. “Of course I’m lucky to have you, Jinyoungie.” He says it like it’s a fact, something irrefutable, and the sincerity in his eyes has Jinyoung’s heart soaring. Before they start crawling together towards the door, Jaebeom catches Jinyoung’s wrist. “You want a proper breakfast? Or just something quick?”

“How much time do we have?” Jinyoung asks. “At least an hour, right? We can do proper breakfast.” Out of the corner of his eye, he spots movement, and he looks past Jaebeom to find Odd very meticulously licking his behind. He smothers a laugh at the sight before looking at Jaebeom again.

“Sounds good,” Jaebeom agrees with a grin. He turns to begin moving again, but freezes almost immediately, because at that exact moment, Odd looks up from his bathing with the air of someone who’s been caught in the act. After several long moments of awkward eye contact, Odd suddenly jolts and darts out of the room.

In the silence that follows, Jinyoung watches Odd leave before turning back to Jaebeom. They only manage to stay quiet for a few more seconds before they can’t contain their laughter anymore.

“Oh my god,” Jinyoung manages to say through his giggles as he settles on the ground cross-legged, abandoning the uncomfortable crawling position. They’ve all but given up on their attempt to leave the room undetected, anyway. “What was _that_?”

Jaebeom is in no better shape as he tries to catch his breath. “Just...cats being cats.” He’s stopped kneeling too, choosing to sit next to Jinyoung instead.

Their explosion of laughter was evidently enough to wake the other cats up, because after a few moments, Nora strolls up to them and rubs her face against their legs, only to be followed by Kunta and Minnie. From the bed, Junior meows loudly, possibly complaining about being left out, before jumping off and joining the others. Odd returns too, several minutes later, no longer startled and jumpy.

“I see what you mean, hyung,” Jinyoung says, scratching Junior’s ears affectionately. “It’s impossible to leave when they’re being so cute.”

“Isn’t it?” Jaebeom sighs, but he doesn’t sound troubled as he lifts Minnie and kisses her nose softly.

“We’ll have to get better at holding in our laughter,” Jinyoung points out. “Or else we’ll just keep waking them up and never manage to leave this room.” It doesn’t occur to him that it might be presumptuous to think that sleeping over will become a regular thing for him. (But that’s okay, because it doesn’t occur to Jaebeom either.)

“We’ll get there eventually,” Jaebeom says, unconcerned.

Jinyoung glances at the clock later and is surprised to find that they’ve spent 45 minutes sitting on the floor with the cats. “I guess we’ll have to do something quick for breakfast after all,” he says, though he doesn’t feel particularly upset about it - this was a very nice way to spend the morning. He untangles himself from Kunta and Nora, murmuring soft apologies to them as he stands up and holds out a hand for Jaebeom to take. “Come on, Jaebeommie, let’s get ready. I’ll pack something to feed you on the way there.”

“Will do,” Jaebeom says with a smile. He gently removes Odd from his lap with a kiss to the top of his head before taking Jinyoung’s hand, confidently, with no hesitation, the way it always is with them, because this is who they are too - wherever Jinyoung goes, Jaebeom follows.

And Jinyoung smiles back at him, his heart warm.

(They end up arriving at the studio five minutes late, together, which of course invites a barrage of questions from the other members. Jinyoung manages to tune most of them out, but the main target is Jaebeom, because they all know Jaebeom gets flustered much more easily than Jinyoung does.

 _Help me_ , Jaebeom pleads with his eyes as Jackson and Yugyeom relentlessly try to find out whether Jinyoung really slept in Jaebeom's bed, because Mark, Bambam, and Yugyeom bet that he did but Jackson and Youngjae disagreed.

Jinyoung laughs before taking pity on him, telling the kids to settle down and focus, and maybe he’ll tell them after practice ends. _I won’t, really_ , he tells Jaebeom with an eye smile, and when Jaebeom nods, Jinyoung knows he understands.

Because there are some things that are just theirs. Someday, of course, they’ll tell the others everything. But for now, if Jaebeom, with his five cats and his silly yet endearing habits and his breathtaking smiles, is Jinyoung’s home - well, that’s no one’s business but their own.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was so flattered and gratified to see the overwhelming positive response to this fic that I just couldn't resist writing an additional scene! Thank you so much for all the feedback and comments - I appreciate each and every one, and the highlight of my day is reading them!
> 
> The story behind this scene is that I saw this tweet: https://twitter.com/doobseedoda/status/1085738996007821312 and absolutely COULD NOT stop myself from writing about it...as one does >.> Also I wanted to include a little snippet in this story that captures Jinyoung's perspective!
> 
> Interestingly, literally right after I wrote this, someone tweeted about the same idea! JJP minds really do think alike! https://twitter.com/chahgase/status/1085942132018479104 (BTW!! @bb_bambam7 is my Twitter handle...you're welcome to follow me if you want!)
> 
> Also credit to my sister for editing and providing me with the hilarious story about our cat licking his butt, which she encouraged me to include in this !
> 
> So here we are - I hope you all enjoyed this little bonus scene! As always, feedback and comments are welcome!

**Author's Note:**

> Looks like I’m back yet again jsdfhjksdak I’ve been at home with nothing to do!! (My winter break is like. five weeks long lmfao so I genuinely would lose my mind if I didn’t spend time writing rip)
> 
> This was heavily inspired by my own experiences being alone at home with my family’s two cats over this winter break (talking to them like they understand what I’m saying is absolutely a thing) and by this post: http://bb-bambam.tumblr.com/post/181654231278/db5kjjgot7-jinyoung-jaebums-personal-trainer because the fact is...they don’t live together as far as we know so how is Jinyoung seeing Jaebum eat at night and why did he say it as if he sees it happening often? Hmmmm
> 
> So anyway, yeah, that’s the story behind how this little thing was born. Also I just love the idea of Jaebeom chilling with his kitties and Jinyoung adopting them into his life too :’) And of course, everyone probably knows by now that domestic!JJP is my favorite thing sjdhsjfhsd
> 
> Also I'm sure most people realize, but just to clarify, I made up the names Junior and Minnie (Jaebeom naming a cat after Jinyoung is such a cute concept...let a girl dream!)
> 
> Just a few things that were referenced in this:  
> JB ga daisuki - http://bb-bambam.tumblr.com/post/181378383613/kissbbom-it-sayseven-though-personality-is  
> Jaebeom’s picture of Jinyoung - https://www.instagram.com/p/Bro6QFblsxn/
> 
> Thank you as always to my lovely sister/editor who improves my fics and my whole life!
> 
> Title is from the iconic “Coming Home” by JJ Project because not only is it fitting, but it’s also one of my ult favorite songs ever!
> 
> Feedback and comments are welcome and appreciated, as always! Hope you all enjoyed this! :)


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